Miami-based developer Russell Galbut has called it quits on three Miami Beach Live Local Act projects after years of pushback against the legislation from the city and residents.

The developer, who leads GFO Investments and Crescent Heights, wrote an email Monday to Miami Beach City Manager Eric Carpenter, Miami Beach Commissioner Alex Fernandez and Miami-Dade County Commissioner Vicki Lopez, notifying them he was pulling the applications for the projects.

Galbut scrapped plans for a 43-story tower with 163 units, 72 of which would be workforce housing, at 1575 Alton Road. He proposed the project in 2024 and was hit with denials through 2026.

He has also pulled his plans for a 28-story, 99-unit building that would include 40 workforce housing units at 740 Alton Road and a 28-story, 100-unit project at 880 71st St., which was proposed in partnership with Miami Beach-based Lefferts.

"This decision reflects my commitment to collaboration, not my retreat from the need for more housing," Galbut wrote in the email, which was shared with Bisnow.

"I believe we can work together to create a Miami Beach approach that encourages responsible investment, protects our neighborhoods, and provides housing for the people who make this city special. And will continue to strive for this always."

The Real Deal first reported Galbut's decision to back away from the projects.

The Florida Legislature passed the Live Local Act in 2023 to incentivize more affordable and workforce housing development by offering tax exemptions and density and height boosts if developers dedicate at least 40% of a project's units to households making between 80% and 120% of the area median income.

Galbut was among the many developers to leverage the Live Local Act when the law was passed. By January 2025, Galbut had proposed six projects in Miami Beach alone.

But the city has openly resisted the legislation and the proposed skyscrapers that followed, citing fear that they would threaten the city's historic charm.

"If you want to destroy Miami Beach, you want to destroy our tourism-based economy, you want to stop Miami Beach being a destination to the wealthiest people in the world, line up Alton Road with 400-foot towers," Fernandez said at a Bisnow event last year.

The law was amended again in 2025 to remove loopholes that cities had been erecting to block qualified Live Local applications, which are supposed to receive administrative approval rather than votes from elected officials or boards. Critics said the changes largely stripped municipalities of say over land use decisions.

Following the most recent changes, Miami Beach approved its first handful of projects this year.

Galbut, a longtime Miami Beach resident, landed approvals for a 16-story, 204-foot tower at 663 Alton Road in June and, in September, got the go-ahead for a 15-story tower with 29 residential units and office space at 1826 Collins Ave., which he is developing with Lefferts.

Galbut's Crescent Heights also revised plans for a 39-story tower at 824 Alton Road with 149 residences split between 72 workforce housing units and 77 market-rate units, Florida YIMBY reported earlier this month.

It is unclear if Galbut, who didn't immediately respond to a request for comment, has any new plans for the sites.

"I have always believed in the original intent of the Live Local Act: creating much-needed affordable and workforce housing," Galbut wrote in the email. "But I also recognize that the conversation surrounding this legislation has moved away from that intention, and I understand the concerns residents have raised about its impact on our community."

Miami Beach is exploring ways to repeal Live Local, directing its city attorney to find avenues for legal challenges and more oversight of project applications, the South Florida Business Journal reported.

Galbut is planning another Live Local Act project on the site of Fort Lauderdale's largest shopping mall, the Galleria Mall at Fort Lauderdale, spanning nine high-rise towers, more than 3,000 apartments, a 170-key hotel, 30 restaurants, office space and new parking.

That project has also met with strong opposition from residents and the city government, but Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis has conceded there is little they can do to block it.

Galbut had strong words this spring for those who tried to prevent the redevelopment of the Galleria.

"We cannot let the idiots, the minority — the very strong minority, but they're very vocal — dictate what happens in a community," Galbut said in May.